Farming companies sued for alleged harassment of female employees

Two farming companies are being sued by federal regulators who say the companies allowed at least four female farmworkers to be sexually harassed and later denied work in retaliation for refusing sexual advances.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed suit Tuesday in United States District Court in San Diego. The lawsuit says two Holtville-based companies, Bornt & Sons, Inc., and its former labor contractor, Barraza Farm Services, broke federal discrimination laws starting as early as 2010 .

“We continue to see generations of female farmworkers being subjected to sexual harassment and who are afraid to speak out due to a fear of retaliation,” Anna Park, regional attorney for the commission's Los Angeles District, said in a statement released Wednesday. “This is a continuing concern for the EEOC, which calls for accountability in this industry.”

A representative for Barraza Farm Services declined The San Diego Union-Tribune’s request for comment on Wednesday. A representative from Bornt & Sons said the company planned to release a statement, but did not provide it by deadline.

The lawsuit says a male manager groped the women’s buttocks and breasts without their consent, tried to kiss them, offered them money and extra work benefits in exchange for sex and made unwelcome sexually-charged comments about their bodies including, “Your (breasts) look nice, you must have breastfed.”

In one case, a female employee was pulled away from her work to clean an office, the lawsuit said. The manager came in, locked the door, “removed his clothes, sat naked on a chair and asked her to (perform a sex act).”

When the companies learned of the federal investigation into complaints of sexual harassment, they failed to take action beyond moving the manager to another farm, where he continued to harass women, according to the lawsuit.

The lawsuit asks the court to order defendants to pay compensation and punitive damages to victims, issue an injunction to prevent harassment in the future and reimburse the commission's legal costs.

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